Comparison of meteorological drought over two normal periods

Abstract

The frequency of extreme meteorological events, including drought, has risen in the last years. This is, among, due to climatic changes occurring in the atmosphere. These extremes have been monitored also on the East Slovakian Lowland. Dry periods are defined as periods of water scarcity in their various forms. In order to quantify changes in the climate at a particular location, it is useful to compare the climatic characteristics monitored over two normal periods. The basic assumption of this work is that Earth's climate has been warming and therefore the drought incidence has been increasing. The aim of this work is to quantify differences in the climate at a particular location over two consecutive normal periods. The two normal periods (NP) are the years 1961–1990 (NP1) and 1991–2020 (NP2). Compared atmospheric elements were monitored at the meteorological station of SHMÚ (Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute) in Milhostov, which is in the central part of the East Slovakian Lowland. Normal periods were analysed in terms of precipitation, temperature, potential evapotranspiration, and selected drought indices. The analysis has shown that the normal period of 1991–2020 (NP2) is both annually and monthly drier than the period of 1961–1990 (NP1), with a significant increase in temperatures and potential evapotranspiration.